Chapter 010: The Shameless Father and Son

Lei Lie personally received Shen Qing and his son. The mission of stopping the beast tide that the Flame Mercenary Corps had taken up was precisely commissioned by the Shen family. Though the two were merely collateral descendants, they served as the family’s representatives. Even if Lei Lie looked down on Shen Qing, a mere nine-star Grand Illusionist, he could not afford to slight the Shen family.

Shen Qing responded with equal warmth. His narrow eyes slanted upward, already etched with several crow’s feet at the corners, giving him an even more insincere air when he smiled. Pulling Shen Aofan forward, he presented his son with a bow. “Commander Lei Lie, we must trouble you with this beast tide. This is my son, Shen Aofan, already a seven-star Illusionist. Yet I have not found a suitable spirit beast for him. As fortune would have it, this beast tide presents an opportunity. I hope Commander Lei Lie will kindly look after my son and help him find a worthy spirit beast.”

A broad smile filled Shen Aofan’s round face as he bowed to Lei Lie.

Lei An and Lei Bai, standing behind Lei Lie, could hardly hide their displeasure at Shen Qing’s words. Someone not even qualified as a Spiritual Illusionist had the audacity to ask their commander to catch a magical beast for this boy? The insolence was palpable.

During a beast tide, magical beasts were indeed plentiful, but one could not simply snatch any beast and make it a spirit beast. Only after being tamed by a beast tamer could a contract be formed with an Illusionist. Beast tamers were rare on the Sacred Radiance Continent—Flame Mercenary Corps had only one master tamer. Taming beasts consumed tremendous spiritual energy. Many accomplished Grand Illusionists within the corps still lacked contracted spirit beasts, yet this seven-star upstart dared hope for the master tamer’s service. What wishful thinking!

Lei Bai, unable to endure further, stepped forward to reject this unreasonable request, but Lei Lie raised an arm to stop him.

The smile faded from Lei Lie’s face. “City Lord Shen’s request is noted. Please inform Lord Shen Luo that we will carry out this mission with utmost diligence.”

“Of course!” Shen Qing beamed, paying no heed to Lei Bai and Lei An’s obvious displeasure. In Luo City, no one dared defy him. Now, tasked by the main city to negotiate with the Flame Mercenary Corps, he carried himself with even greater arrogance.

If, in this beast tide, he could capture the legendary divine beast orchestrating the chaos, this achievement might allow him and his sons to enter the main city unimpeded.

Lei Lie had lost all patience for conversation. Were it not for Lord Shen Luo’s sake, he would have thrown this father and son out of the camp long ago. Turning to Lei An, he commanded, “Lei An, show City Lord Shen around the camp.”

“City Lord Shen, I have matters to attend to. Please excuse me.” Without another glance at Shen Qing, he departed with Lei Bai.

Lei An sneered coldly. “City Lord Shen, this way, please. Here is our corps’ elite unit, and over there is the Flame Squad…”

Shen Qing snorted inwardly. Only a fool could not see Lei Lie’s contempt. Let him be smug for now—once he gained entry to the main city as a revered Sky Illusionist, we’d see who had the last laugh. Comforted by this thought, Shen Qing followed Lei An to tour the Flame Mercenary Corps’ camp.

The reason the Flame Mercenary Corps ranked among the continent’s top ten was not just their numbers, but their formidable elite mercenaries. They boasted as many as ten Sky Illusionists, over a hundred Spiritual Illusionists, and countless Grand Illusionists.

It was the first time Shen Aofan had seen so many powerful mercenaries gathered in one place. Those already in possession of spirit beasts summoned them from their spirit spaces, filling the camp with lively scenes and dazzling displays of all manner of magical creatures.

Shen Duo handed her unicorn horse to Zheng Wu. For now, until her own strength grew, she preferred to avoid contact with Shen Qing and his son, having suffered firsthand their cunning and shamelessness.

She was about to disappear into the crowd when a familiar voice called out from a distance. Helpless, she turned to see Lei Hang standing a dozen steps away, flashing a bright grin, his white teeth gleaming in the warm sunlight.

Shen Duo raised a hand in greeting, and Lei Hang strode over.

In the distance, Shen Aofan also turned at the shout and caught sight of Shen Duo, dressed in black at the camp’s edge. Her usually chilly face was softened by a faint smile. His expression stiffened, discomfort crawling over his skin as jealousy and rage surged within him. This good-for-nothing, unable even to absorb spiritual energy, had somehow managed to cozy up to the young master of the Flame Mercenary Corps—how very capable she was indeed!

Shen Aofan signaled to Shen Qing, who also turned and spotted Shen Duo. Shen Aofan had already reported to him about last night’s events. When Shen Duo, a direct descendant, had first arrived in Luo City, he had never taken her seriously. Although the Shen family’s law enforcer from the main city had instructed him to look after her, it was merely a formality—there was never any real intention to value her. That was why, no matter how much the original Shen Duo suffered, he had never stepped in.

But now, this useless girl seemed utterly changed overnight—no longer servile, no longer weak and easy to bully. Instead, this transformation made Shen Qing uneasy, awakening a strong urge to eliminate her.

As Lei Hang approached, Shen Duo kept a wary eye on Shen Qing and his son. Sure enough, they too began walking her way. Lei Hang, scratching his short hair a bit sheepishly, said, “Shen Duo, Father wouldn’t let me out this morning. Sorry I couldn’t accompany you to Keli Town. How did your task go?”

“It’s fine. Didn’t you arrange for Zheng Wu to go with me? The package has been delivered. I just need to submit the mission scroll at the Mercenary Guild now.” As she spoke, Shen Qing and his son drew near.

“Well, isn’t this our Ninth Miss of the Shen family? What a rare sight to see you here. Tell me, Ninth Miss, are you now a mercenary too?” Shen Qing’s tone was thick with mockery. Lei An, Lei Hang, and the nearby mercenaries all looked displeased. Everyone knew the four great families looked down on mercenaries—his words were a slap in the face.

Shen Duo’s face grew cold, but she turned and returned a composed bow. “City Lord Shen, you are correct. I just registered at the Mercenary Guild two days ago.”

Hearing this, Shen Qing’s expression became quite remarkable. He had never expected Shen Duo to admit to being a mercenary. The old Shen Duo, even when exiled to Luo City, had still clung to the pride of a direct descendant. Even at her lowest, she would never have chosen to become a mercenary.